Kent MAPPA - shareweb.kent.gov.uk · The work of Kent MAPPA has continued to provide effective and thorough management of all high risk offenders, during this past year. This has

PROBATIONKENT

Changing LivesReducing Crime

Kent MAPPA Annual Report 2012/13

We are pleased to present our MAPPA Report for 2012-2013.

Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements are recognised as a world-leading approach to the management of high risk offenders.

Kent Police, Probation and Prisons, in conjunction with all the Duty to Co-operate Agencies, have continued to work together over the past year to protect the public, appropriately manage risk and ultimately to save lives.

Consistent and focused work has provided a high standard of service to the people of Kent which is reflected in a continued improvement in our practice and effectiveness.

Liaison with other MAPPA areas, nationwide, and regionally has additionally reinforced the efficiency of multi-agency management.

Michelle Jarman HoweDeputy Director of Custody,

Kent & Sussex Prisons

Ian LearmonthChief Constable,

Kent Police

Adrian BaillieuInterim Chief Executive,

Kent Probation

Introduction

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Kent MAPPA Annual Report 2012-13

Contents

MAPPA framework What is MAPPA 4

How does MAPPA work? 5

MAPPA in Kent 6

The role of the Strategic Management Board 8

Safeguarding Children Boards 9

Victim Liaison 9

Lay Advisors 10

MAPPA Statistical Data 10

Statistical Explanation 12

MAPPA work in Kent

Appendix

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(a) MAPPA (Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements) are a set of arrangements to manage the risk posed by the most serious sexual and violent offenders (MAPPA-eligible offenders) under the provi-sions of sections 325 to 327B of the Criminal Justice Act 2003.

(b) They bring together the Police, Probation and Prison Services in each of the 42 Areas in England and Wales into what is known as the MAPPA Responsible Authority.

(c) A number of other agencies are under a Duty To Co-operate (DTC) with the Responsible Authority. These include Social Services, Health Trusts, Youth Offending Teams, Jobcentre Plus and Local Housing and Education Authorities.

(d) The Responsible Authority is required to appoint two Lay Advisers to sit on each MAPPA area Strategic Management Board (SMB) along-side senior representatives from each of the Responsible Authority and duty to co-operate agencies.

(e) Lay Advisers are members of the public with no links to the busi-ness of managing MAPPA offenders and act as independent, yet informed, observers; able to pose questions which the profession-als closely involved in the work might not think of asking. They also bring to the Strategic Management Board their understanding and perspective of the local community (where they must reside and have strong links).

What is MAPPA?

The MAPPA Framework

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MAPPA-eligible offenders are identified and information about them is shared by the agencies in order to inform the risk assessments and risk management plans of those managing or supervising them.

In the majority of cases that is as far as MAPPA extends but in some cases, it is determined that active multi-agency management is required. In such cases there will be regular MAPPA meetings attended by relevant agency practitioners.

There are 3 categories of MAPPA-eligible offender: Category 1 - registered sexual offenders; Category 2 – (in the main) violent offenders sentenced to imprisonment for 12 months or more; and Category 3 – offenders who do not qualify under categories 1 or 2 but who currently pose a risk of serious harm.

There are three management levels intended to ensure that resources are focussed upon the cases where they are most needed; generally those involving the higher risks of serious harm. Level 1 involves ordinary agency management (i.e. no MAPPA meetings or resources); Level 2 is where the active involvement of more than one agency is required to manage the offender but the risk management plans do not require the attendance and commitment of resources at a senior level. Where senior oversight is required the case would be managed at Level 3.

MAPPA is supported by ViSOR. This is a national IT system for the management of people who pose a serious risk of harm to the public. The police have been using ViSOR since 2005 but, since June 2008, ViSOR has been fully operational allowing, for the first time, key staff from the Police, Probation and Prison Services to work on the same IT system, thus improving the quality and timeliness of risk assessments and of interventions to prevent offending.

The combined use of ViSOR increases the ability to share intelligence across organisations and enable the safe transfer of key information when these high risk offenders move, enhancing public protection measures.

How MAPPA Works?

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The work of Kent MAPPA has continued to provide effective and thoroughmanagement of all high risk offenders, during this past year. This has beensupported and reinforced by the active and rigorous involvement of the three Responsible Authorities (RAs) and Duty to Cooperate Agencies (DTCs) across the county. Multi-agency liaison and engagement has provided robust assessment and management of this risk, and thus has ensured the safety and protection of the public in Kent.

Effectiveness has yet again been highlighted by the absence of any Serious Further Offences (SFO) committed by offenders managed at Level 3 MAPPA during this period. One SFO was committed by an offender managed at Level 2 MAPPA, with a review indicating that there were no failings of MAPPA requiring the commissioning of a MAPPA Serious Case Review (SCR) There have been no SCRs commissioned during this reporting period.

The increasingly rigorous management of all categories and levels under MAPPA has resulted in an increase in breach proceedings, whereby offenders are brought to justice for failing to comply with the notification requirements under the Sexual Offences Act. Offenders returned to custody for breach of SOPO (Sexual Offences Prevention Order), has increased from 2 during the previous reporting period to 14 during this reporting period, again demonstrating the increasingly rigorous management of offenders subject to these restrictive Orders underMAPPA.

The Kent ViSOR Referral Unit (VRU) continues to provide a focused approach to the identification of all MAPPA offenders and incorporates a Kent Police and Probation Panel who screen all cases referred to MAPPA level 2 and 3 to ensure offenders are consistently managed at the appropriate level.

The process of managing MAPPA referrals has been further enhanced during the past year, by the use of an electronic referral system, developed by the national MAPPA team. This has resulted in an improvement in the quality of MAPPA level 2 and 3 referrals, through ensuring consistent completion of all relevant information. It has also served to reduce the administrative burden of the MAPPA paperwork, by generating the MAPPA minutes template containing relevant information for the initial meeting.

The VRU additionally provides support for the work of MAPPA by the incorporation of central points of contact (CPC) for Prisons, Courts, approved premises and Mental Health, further promoting a multi-agency approach to risk management and facilitating information sharing. This has also been reinforced by MAPPA awareness training offered to all Duty to Cooperate (DTC) agencies.

MAPPA in Kent

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This training was very well attended, with approximately 150 DTC colleagues attending the training events. Feedback about it’s effectiveness has been extremely positive and the training will form part of a rolling programme of MAPPA training to be delivered annually in Kent.

The Community Personality Disordered Offenders strategy has commenced this year. Psychologists will be working with Offender Managers in Kent Probation to support their work with high risk, probable personality disordered clients, many of whom will be managed by MAPPA.

Circles of Support and Accountability (COSA) have continued to identify and train suitable volunteers to work with core members. COSA are groups of specially selected, trained and supervised volunteers who form a circle around a core member (who has been convicted of a sexual offence) offering advice and support, which is later developed on a more informal approach to offer a higher level of social and supportive opportunities. COSA is very effective at reducing reoffending and risky behaviours, increasing successful community reintegration, and has provided an additional means of risk management within MAPPA.

The Kent Probation Forensic Psychologist, has continued to work on her Doctorate researching the management of offenders with Learning Disabilities. She has completed data collection and is now writing up her thesis.

The Kent Probation Forensic Psychologist and Prison Psychologist will be delivering training to the Kent Police ViSOR officers on working with sexual and violent offenders.

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The role of the Strategic Management Board

Senior representatives of each of the agencies involved in MAPPA form a Strategic Management Board (SMB), which meets at least quarterly to monitor the arrangements and direct any necessary improvements.

The SMB measures effectiveness against the standards contained within the MAPPA Guidance of 2012, ensuring a common standard of effective public protection arrangements with each of the agencies playing a full part in MAPPA.

Kent’s MAPPA SMB membership has continued to strengthen and develop throughout this year, resulting in effective engagement from each of the responsible authorities and agencies with a duty to co-operate in Kent.

The agencies represented at the Kent SMB are

The three Responsible Authorities:• Kent Probation• Kent Police• HMP Prison Service-Kent

Duty to Cooperate Agencies:• Kent County Council (Adult and Children’s Services)• Medway Council (Children’s Services)• Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust• Kent Forensic Psychiatry Service• Kent Integrated Youth Offending Service• JobcentrePlus• Local Housing Authorities• Kent and Medway Commissioner for Adult Mental Health and Substance

Misuse• Electronic monitoring providers-G4S• Education authorities.• UKBA (now Immigration Enforcement)

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Victim liaison

In 2001 a statutory duty was placed on Probation Services to contact victims where the offender had received a sentences of 12 months or more for a violent or sexual offence.

The role of the Victim Liaison Service was to notify victims when an offender is due for release on licence; to seek their views on the conditions of that licence such as non-contact or exclusion zones; provide them with general information about the custodial process; and to feedback their views and concerns to the Offender Manager, Parole Board, Governor or MAPPA . Victim Liaison Officers continue to make valuable contributions to the MAPPA process by informing the panel of the ‘missing pieces of the jigsaw” and highlighting risk issues of which the Offender Manager and MAPPA may not be aware.

Work is currently being undertaken by the Kent VLO team to further develop their role within MAPPA to ensure that the victim perspective remains central to considerations regarding the management of risk of harm within MAPPA.

Safeguarding Children Boards

MAPPA plays an important role in the protection of children across Kent and Medway. Agencies work together to decide upon the most appropriate risk management plan including both restrictive and rehabilitative elements to both Community Orders and Licences in safely managing those who present a known risk of harm to children. Representatives from Kent MAPPA have liaised with both Kent and Medway Safeguarding Children Boards in the last year to increase their knowledge of MAPPA. Members of local Safeguarding Boards as well as social workers involved with families are invited to attend MAPPA meetings so that child protection issues can be shared and considered amongst the MAPPA panel to ensure that the best outcomes can be achieved in safeguarding the welfare of children and their families across Kent and Medway.

Kent Probation now has a dedicated Probation Officer based part time at the Central Referral Unit (CRU). This Safeguarding Officer works closely withMAPPA partners within this multi-agency team and will greatly improve multiagency working. This is a really exciting development in the safeguarding work undertaken through MAPPA.

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Lay Advisors

What do the Lay Advisers do?

The responsible authority is required to appoint two lay advisers to sit on the Strategic Management Board. The lay advisers act as independent yet informed observers; able to pose questions which the professionals closely involved in the work might not think of asking. They also bring to the SMB their understanding and perspective of the local community – where they must reside or have strong links.

Lay Advisers are full members of the Strategic Management Board (SMB) assisting in the MAPPA review functions. They are not expected to be experts but informed observers and posers of questions. They act as a ‘critical friend’ who can provide a challenge to the professionals and bring an understanding and perspective of the local area. The Lay Adviser role is voluntary and unpaid.

Kent has recently appointed two new lay advisers. Below are some reflections on the experience so far by our longest serving new recruit:

I was interviewed in May last year but my official appointment did not come through until December 2012. Before that I attended a national lay advisors’ seminar in London which was a valuable introduction to the role.

I had an induction meeting in January and prior to that I had attended my first level three MAPPA meeting in Maidstone, which helped to inform my needs from induction.Since then I have attended level two MAPPAs each quarter, some in Canterbury and some in Folkestone.

I have also attended a Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference (MARAC) in Margate and met the East Kent MARAC co-ordinator to discuss communication between the two bodies. Following on from this I have worked with the MAPPA manager, Canterbury Senior Probation Officer and MARAC/MAPPA co-ordinator on a joint working protocol for MAPPA and MARAC.

I was surprised at my first few meetings that there did not seem to be a general understanding of the lay advisor role, but that has gradually changed as I have attended more meetings.

I have come with a background in social work, probation and drugs services, which means that I have relevant experience of professionals working collaboratively to devise joint working plans. This gave me a great advantage when first attending MAPPAs and SMBs.

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Statistical Data

Number of MAPPA eligible offenders (living in Kent and Medway) on 31 March 2013:

Category 1: Registered Sexual Offenders

Category 2: Violent offenders

Category 3: Other Dangerous Offenders

TOTAL

Level 1 1,373 381 0 1,754Level 2 27 14 9 50Level 3 0 2 0 2Total 1,400 397 9 1,806

MAPPA-eligible offenders managed by Kent MAPPA in Levels 2 and 3by category (yearly total):




TOTAL

Level 2 64 34 12 110Level 3 6 4 0 10Total 70 38 12 120

RSOs cautioned or convicted for breach of notification requirements 7

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Restrictive orders forCategory 1 offenders

Sexual Offences Prevention Orders (SOPOs), Notification Orders(NOs) and Foreign Travel Orders (FTOs) imposed by the courts:

SOPOs 139NOs 0FTOs 0

Number of level 2 and 3 offenders returned to custody for breach oflicence:




TOTAL


Number of level 2 and 3 offenders returned to custody for breach ofSexual Offences Prevention Order:




TOTAL


Total number of registered Sexual Offenders per 100,000 population 91*

*This figure has been calculated using the Mid-2012 Population Estimates: Singleyear of age and sex for Police Areas in England and Wales; estimated residentpopulation, published by the Office for National Statistics on 26 June 2013,excluding those aged less than ten years of age.

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Statistical Explanation

The totals of MAPPA-eligible offenders, broken down by category, reflect the picture on 31 March 2013 (i.e. they are a snapshot). The rest of the data covers the period 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013.

(a) MAPPA-eligible offenders – there are a number of offenders defined in law as eligible for MAPPA management, because they have committed specified sexual and violent offences or they currently pose a risk of serious harm, although the majority (97% this year) are actually managed under ordinary agency (Level 1) arrangements rather than via MAPP meetings.

(b) Registered Sexual Offenders (RSOs) – those who are required to notify the police of their name, address and other personal details and to notify any changes subsequently (this is known as the “notification requirement.”). Failure to comply with the notification requirement is a criminal offence which carries a maximum penalty of 5 years’ imprisonment.

(c) Violent Offenders – this category includes violent offenders sentenced to imprisonment or detention for 12 months or more, or detained under a hospital order. It also includes a small number of sexual offenders who do not qualify for registration and offenders disqualified from working with children.

(d) Other Dangerous Offenders – offenders who do not qualify under the other two MAPPA-eligible categories, but who currently pose a risk of serious harm which requires management via MAPP meetings.

(e) Breach of licence – offenders released into the community following a period of imprisonment of 12 months or more will be subject to a licence with conditions (under probation supervision). If these conditions are not complied with, breach action will be taken and the offender may be recalled to prison.

(f) Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO) – a court may make a SOPO at the time of dealing with certain sexual offenders or when the police make a special application on account of the offender’s behaviour in the community. The full order lasts for a minimum of five years, and can last indefinitely. A SOPO will require the subject to register as a sexual offender and can include conditions, for example to prevent the offender loitering near schools or playgrounds. If the offender fails to comply with (i.e. breaches) the requirements of the order, he can be taken back to court and may be liable to up to five years’ imprisonment.

(g) Notification Order – this requires sexual offenders who have been convicted overseas to register with the police, in order to protect the public in the UK from the risks that they pose. The police may apply to the court for a notification order in relation to offenders who are already in the UK or are intending to come to the UK.

(h) Foreign Travel Orders – these prevent offenders with convictions for sexual offences against children from travelling abroad where this is necessary to protect children from the risk of sexual harm.

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Documents

Kent MAPPA - shareweb.kent.gov.uk · The work of Kent MAPPA has continued to provide effective and thorough management of all high risk offenders, during this past year. This has